Lumateperone for the Treatment of Schizophrenia: Number Needed to Treat, Number Needed to Harm, and Likelihood to Be Helped or Harmed.

Objective: To describe lumateperone for the treatment of schizophrenia in adults using number needed to treat (NNT), number needed to harm (NNH), and likelihood to be helped or harmed (LHH).Methods: Data were obtained from the 3 phase 2/3 lumateperone trials, conducted between 2011 and 2016, in patients with schizophrenia diagnosed using the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision, or Fifth Edition. Efficacy was assessed using various response criteria; tolerability was principally assessed using rates of adverse events (AEs).Results: Pooled data of the 2 informative studies showed statistically significant estimates of NNT versus placebo for lumateperone 42 mg/d for the responder thresholds of ≥ 20% and ≥ 30% improvement on Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) total scores, with NNT for response versus placebo at 4 weeks and endpoint of 9 (95% confidence interval [CI], 5-36) and 8 (95% CI, 5-21), respectively. Pooling all studies, discontinuation because of AEs was uncommon, and the NNH versus placebo was 389 (not statistically significant from placebo [NS]). Rates of individual AEs resulted in NNH versus placebo > 10 except for somnolence/sedation (NNH of 8; 95% CI, 6-12). The occurrence of weight gain ≥ 7% from baseline yielded a NNH estimate of 122 (NS). Rates of akathisia were lower for patients receiving lumateperone compared with placebo. LHH for response versus somnolence/sedation was ~ 1 for lumateperone (similar to the risperidone active control group); otherwise, lumateperone exhibited LHH ratios that were much greater than 1 for all other AEs and that ranged from 13.6 to 48.6 for these other benefit-risk calculations.Conclusions: In 3 phase 2/3 trials, the benefit-risk assessment of lumateperone was favorable as measured by NNT, NNH, and LHH.Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov identifiers: NCT01499563, NCT02282761, NCT02469155.

The effect of vilazodone on sexual function during the treatment of major depressive disorder.

INTRODUCTION: Sexual dysfunction is common in major depressive disorder (MDD), and many serotonergic antidepressants adversely affect sexual function. Vilazodone, a novel serotonin (5-HT) reuptake inhibitor and 5-HT1A partial agonist approved for MDD, exerts its effects at the 5-HT transporter and at both presynaptic and postsynaptic 5-HT1A receptors. This mechanism may limit sexual dysfunction. AIM: To summarize effects of vilazodone (40 mg/day, with food) on sexual function in adults with MDD. METHODS: Data sources were three Phase III studies: two 8-week, placebo-controlled studies (NCT00285376 and NCT00683592) and a 52-week open-label study (NCT00644358). Sexual function was assessed by analyzing changes from baseline to end of treatment (EOT) using validated measures. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Arizona Sexual Experience Scale or Changes in Sexual Functioning Questionnaire. RESULTS: Population included 869 patients (vilazodone, 436; placebo, 433) from placebo-controlled studies and 599 patients from the open-label study. Sexual dysfunction prevalence was high (50%, men; 68%, women) before treatment and declined during treatment in vilazodone and placebo groups, indicating improvement on average. At EOT, stable/improved sexual function was observed in ≥91% of patients in placebo-controlled studies; treatment group differences in sexual dysfunction at EOT were not statistically significant for either sex. Differences vs. placebo in changes from baseline of sexual function scores were small and were generally not statistically significant; effect sizes (Cohen's D) were generally of low magnitude. In the placebo-controlled studies, 8.0% of vilazodone-treated patients and 0.9% of placebo-treated patients reported ≥1 sexual-function-related treatment-emergent adverse event (P<0.001). CONCLUSION: Half of men and two thirds of women with MDD had sexual dysfunction at baseline; sexual function improved on average in both vilazodone and placebo groups. Results suggest that vilazodone may have a small adverse impact on sexual function in adults with MDD relative to the high prevalence of sexual dysfunction at baseline.